Finding the Matching Magazine for a Luger - Has Anyone Had Any Luck?

AP96

AP96

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Recently made a deal on an artillery Luger and I decided to undertake the near-impossible challenge of trying to find one of its matching magazines. Just wondering if anyone has had luck doing this before? If so, how did you come across the magazine and how long did you search?

Thanks in-advance,
Andrew
 
I imagine that if someone with computer skills were to create a well-designed database where milsurp owners could enter their serial #'s and their mismatched part numbers through an online form, and there was a lot of uptake, it would be possible to run queries and match a lot of people with the parts they need. Huge security risk though - basically another gun registry.
 
I knew someone who found the matching magazine in the collection of a well-known national museum.

If they were separated fairly recently, there is a chance. Otherwise, no.
 
Start with listing your serials on various forums, then anyone searching in the same way you are might find it. As an example I have a genuine navy magazine... (but I suspect the gun it belonged to is long destroyed...) I've had people reach out who had a very close serial...
 
This is a story of good luck!

I bought this Artillery Luger on December 14 2004 ---it came with an armorer's replacement magazine.

The fellow that I got the Luger from bought it back in 1980.

I asked him who he bought it from and I tracked down the son of the original owner.

When I called him---- he said that he had since found a magazine for the Luger that his father had put away for safe keeping.

When I went to get the magazine----it turned out to be a matching magazine that had been separated from the pistol for 24 years.

I picked it up on December 20 2004----what a great Christmas present!

Luck is required when it comes to finding matching magazines.
I have a 1937 dated Luger with two matching magazines.
I also had a 1938 dated Luger that had two matching magazines. (Since sold.)









 
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drm3m said:
This is a story of good luck!

I bought this Artillery Luger on December 14 2004 ---it came with an armorer's replacement magazine.

The fellow that I got the Luger from bought it back in 1980.

I asked him who he bought it from and I tracked down the son of the original owner.

When I called him---- he said that he had since found a magazine for the Luger that his father had put away for safe keeping.

When I went to get the magazine----it turned out to be a matching magazine that had been separated from the pistol for 24 years.

I picked it up on December 20 2004----what a great Christmas present!

Luck is required when it comes to finding matching magazines.
I have a 1937 dated Luger with two matching magazines.
I also had a 1938 dated Luger that had two matching magazines. (Since sold.)









Click to expand...

Is this the brag about two maching mags thread? Got one too, but don't want to take this too far off topic :p
 
Finding a orphan magazine for a luger is tough, first it has to have the correct serial number and letter suffix, next would be the type of magazine be it for a specific year series and the manufacture of the luger, example Erfurt or DWM in Imperial era, ,Simson between the war years and next Mauser mfg, Haenel or Krieghoff. Lots to know before saying hooray I finally found it. Personally I have many lugers both with matching magazines and non matched magazines. Erfurt for example can have one or two acceptance marks depending on the year as with DWM depending on the year the luger was manufactured will have the serial either across the axis of the base or verticle on the early ones.

Force matched magazines are common with russian capture so although correct for a captured luger they still do not command the value of THE original magazine, Police issue magazines are again another area of frustration, could be eagle B,C or L sometimes a K will sneak in there.

Imperial navy magazines can be another minefield as many are fakes but if you do some homework it gets easier to spot the boosted magazines.

I have helped to match up only one correct magazine for a USA navy Luger owner but have not been lucky myself with many collecting years behind me in the Luger field.

Don Hallock of the USA as well as the works written by Jan C Still have much info on magazines as does the Simson book. Dons book covers mostly WW#2 Mauser lugers and he really gets into the coding and magazine specifics.

Die hard luger collectors the world over have contributed to the above works and I'm sure I missed a few Authors but did not wish to elaborate as it takes many years and a good eye

So basically invest in some reference and keep searching online auctions and these forums for the one u need, don,t give up to easy.

Good luck with your search Andrew
 
Just as a Buyer Beware, recently on one of the gun forums there was a big US
Dealer/Auction House selling faked matching mags with a matching Luger rig.
The numbers and letters were struck with new made Repro dies.
Anything for a Buck!
 
I had purchased a few pistols from this small gun shop.
The owner dealt mostly with hunting guns---he was less familiar with WWII stuff.
I had previously purchased an ac-42 P.38 from him which came in an excellent 1936 dated Luger holster.
So-- I used it for this Luger as it was better than the one that came with this Luger.







1938-Luger-serial-number-7289-L.jpg




I sold this rig to a fellow from Calgary---on CGN.
 
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Coyote ugly is bang on with his cautions, before spending big bucks on a matching luger rig do some diligence on your own, compare the letter and number fonts on the magazines against the lugers serial number and letter fonts on the frame . DRM3M has done an excellent job showing both his magazines compared to the lugers barrel and frame serial numbers, on the right side of his lugers receiver the acceptance eagle on his magazines should be the same as his receivers acceptance.

You will also note the plus sign on the magazine base of one magazine, this is the correct placement to denote the second magazine in military fashion. Police magazines will have a number 1 and 2 to denote the correct factory applied magazine sequence in a true luger rig. Good job David.

Also that 1936 luger holster is as good as it gets, clear crisp leather embossed stamps.
 
In the 1960s and 1970s there were groups devoted to trading Luger and P38 parts to create matching numbered guns.
Old magazines are a wonderful source of information which is generally forgotten...
Quiet said:
I imagine that if someone with computer skills were to create a well-designed database where milsurp owners could enter their serial #'s and their mismatched part numbers through an online form, and there was a lot of uptake, it would be possible to run queries and match a lot of people with the parts they need. Huge security risk though - basically another gun registry.
Click to expand...
 
1001 is the East German marking
I have a few of them
I got them years ago when some of the East German guns
were sold here
It seems like the dealer kept the spare magazines for
some reason
Marked 1 or 2 with the gun number
 
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